If you are an occupational therapist practicing in the state of New Mexico, you are well aware of how much time, effort, and money you've put into earning the professional license that allows you to practice your profession in the state. Years of study in college and grad school, many weeks of practical fieldwork, and time spent intensely preparing for and taking the NBCOT exam were all necessary before the state of New Mexico's Board of Occupational Therapy granted you a license. Of course, once licensed, your work doesn't end; you have continuing education requirements you must meet when you renew your license each year.
With all of that work you've put into being able to practice as a licensed occupational therapist in New Mexico, it stands to reason that you need to do everything you can to protect your license if you learn that someone has filed a misconduct allegation against you. The Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team is ready to protect your rights and defend you if your license is threatened by a misconduct investigation. Call us today at 888.535.3686 or fill out our online contact form to learn more about how the Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team can help protect your license – and your future.
New Mexico Occupational Therapist Licensing
New Mexico's Board of Occupational Therapy (BOT) issues licenses to occupational therapists in the state. It also handles license renewals and disciplinary-related matters. These can include investigations of misconduct complaints; resolution of those matters through agreements with license holders; and where necessary, hearings to resolve disciplinary matters that cannot be settled.
In order to be licensed to practice occupational therapy, practitioners need to have taken the proper curriculum from an accredited OT program. This should include a minimum amount of fieldwork, typically at least six months. Then they need to pass the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy exam, referred to as the NBCOT. With that behind them, applicants need to provide the New Mexico BOT with the information requested on the license application, and must submit to a criminal background check.
Note: As of this writing, a number of states have joined the Occupational Therapy Licensure Compact; New Mexico is not one of them. A bill has been introduced that would add New Mexico to the states that have joined the OT Licensure Compact, which when it goes into effect, will allow OT's licensed in one Compact state to easily practice in another Compact state. The Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team is keeping tabs on the status of the Occupational Therapy Licensure Compact, both in New Mexico and in other states across the country, and we can answer your questions about it.
There is a long list of crimes that can disqualify an applicant from receiving an occupational therapy license. While conviction of any of these will not automatically result in the BOT refusing to issue a license to an applicant, they must be disclosed to the BOT and will be considered along with the rest of the application. The Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team can help prepare your application if you have one or more criminal convictions to disclose. Often, we are able to make sure the BOT has the full story behind your convictions so that your chances of having your license approved are increased.
In New Mexico, licensed occupational therapists must renew their license each year and must have taken approved continuing education to be able to do so. OTs must take at least 15 “contact hours” of continuing education each year. Here too, if you have been convicted of a crime during the past year it will need to be disclosed to the BOT; and here too, the Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team can help you do so in a way that will reduce the chances that your conviction will result in the BOT refusing to renew your license.
While there are no guarantees that the BOT will issue or renew a license if you have a criminal conviction, depending on your circumstances it makes sense to be able to explain to the BOT what happened, what you have done to overcome the past conviction, and why it should issue or renew your OT license. The Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team is ready to help you put your best foot forward in these kinds of situations.
The New Mexico Board of Occupational Therapy and What It Does
New Mexico's Board of Occupational Therapy (formally called the Board of Examiners for Occupational Therapy) is responsible for protecting the public by safeguarding their “health, safety, and welfare.” The BOT is focused on making sure that licensed occupational therapists exhibit “the highest degree of professional conduct,” and will discipline OTs who fail to meet the BOT's standards. The BOT decides who will receive an occupational therapist license and who will be allowed to renew their license. It is also responsible for investigating allegations of misconduct against licensees, and disciplining licensees who are found to have committed misconduct or otherwise failed to meet BOT standards.
The New Mexico BOT is governed by the state's Occupational Therapy Act as well as by a related administrative code. When the BOT imposes public discipline on an occupational therapist, it publishes a summary of the discipline on its public website.
The New Mexico Board of Occupational Therapy Professional Licensing Disciplinary Authority
The New Mexico BOT will investigate misconduct complaints filed against licensed occupational therapists. It will discipline those found to have violated certain standards of practice or conduct. These can include the following:
- Violation of the BOT's Code of Ethics
- Providing false information in connection with a license application
- Engaging in false or misleading advertising
- Violation of the Occupational Therapy Act or its related rules or regulations
- Harassment or intimidation of a patient or colleague, including sexual harassment
- Negligent practice of occupational therapy
- Conviction of a crime, particularly one that relates to the licensee's practice of occupational therapy
- Practicing occupational therapy while impaired by alcohol or drugs
- Being disciplined by another state's Board of Occupational Therapy
The New Mexico BOT will follow specific procedures when a licensed OT is accused of misconduct. This is where the Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team can help – our attorneys can protect your rights and defend you and your license from the point the investigation begins all the way through the resolution of your matter.
How the New Mexico Board of Occupational Therapy Learns About Alleged Misconduct
There are two main ways the New Mexico BOT learns about conduct that could lead to the discipline of a licensed occupational therapist. The first is through complaints filed with the state's Regulation and Licensing Department. The second is when licensees disclose potential misconduct – such as a criminal conviction – as part of their license renewal.
Anyone can file a complaint against a licensed occupational therapist in New Mexico. The Regulation and License Department maintains a specific online portal for that purpose. Complaints can also be made in person or by phone to the BOT, though the BOT will only address written complaints.
Board of Occupational Therapy Disciplinary Investigations
Written complaints are sent to the BOT's Complaint Committee and will typically be assigned to a Complaint Manager. The licensee will be notified of the complaint in writing and will typically have 20 days to respond to it. The response to the complaint is important – in many cases, it can help explain “the rest of the story” that the complaint fails to disclose. The Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team can typically provide a significant amount of help at this stage. Our attorneys understand the issues that are important to the BOT and can often prepare the response to the complaint so that it addresses those concerns.
The Complaint Committee and Complaint Manager may next appoint an investigator to look into the substance of the complaint. When this happens, the Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team can help protect your rights at every step of the investigation process. We can prepare you for the interview that the investigator is likely to conduct with you, and we can be there when it happens to make sure the questions you are asked are clear and fair, and that you understand them before you respond.
We will often conduct our own investigation of the allegations made against you, looking for evidence that can be used to help defend you against the allegations you are facing.
The investigator will prepare a report that will make a recommendation to the BOT as to what action it should take in response to the complaint. In some cases, the conclusion may be that the BOT does not have jurisdiction over the matter raised in the complaint, and the complaint will be dismissed or referred to another agency that may have jurisdiction.
If the complaint is not dismissed, it and the investigator's report will be reviewed by the BOT. If the BOT decides to move forward with the matter, it will issue a Notice of Contemplated Action (NCA) to the licensee. That NCA will state the sanctions that the BOT proposes issuing against the licensee, and the reasons for those proposed sanctions.
This is not the end of the matter, however. In many cases, it is possible to negotiate a settlement of the matter with the BOT, one that may include sanctions different from those discussed in the NCA. The Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team can be very helpful in these kinds of negotiations. Our experienced attorneys have helped others resolve these kinds of issues in similar situations before, and that experience helps us negotiate with the BOT with a focus on resolving matters in a way that will have the least effect on your license.
While most disciplinary matters will settle, not all of them do. Those that don't will proceed to a formal hearing, where witnesses can provide testimony and be cross-examined, and both sides can produce evidence to be considered at the hearing.
Aside from dismissal, the BOT has a number of options when it comes to disciplining a licensee. These include:
- Refusing to renew a license
- Written reprimand
- Written censure, a more serious form of a reprimand
- Probation, with conditions that the licensee must meet during the probation term
- Restrictions or limitations on the type of work the licensee can do
- A requirement that the licensee take one or more remedial education courses
- Requiring the licensee to work under the supervision of a monitor approved by the BOT
- Suspension of the license
- Revocation of the license
Having your license suspended or revoked can obviously be devastating to both your career and your income. The Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team understands how important your license is to you and your livelihood. Let us help you fight to protect it.
The Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team Can Help Protect Your Occupational Therapist License in New Mexico
If you have been notified that a misconduct complaint has been filed with New Mexico's Regulation and Licensing Department, which could hurt your ability to practice as a licensed occupational therapist, contact the Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team for help. Our experienced attorneys regularly represent professional licensees, including occupational therapists, facing disciplinary investigations and proceedings.
We understand the laws, rules, regulations, and procedures that apply to occupational therapists, and know what it takes to protect your rights during the investigation process and to defend against disciplinary charges brought against you by the New Mexico Board of Occupational Therapy.
Contact the Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team today if you are facing a disciplinary investigation or proceeding. The sooner you contact us, the better we will be able to help protect your license, your livelihood, and your reputation. We can be reached at 888.535.3686, or by filling out our online contact form. Let us schedule a confidential consultation with you, so that you can tell us about your case and we can tell you how we can help.
